Editor Richard Cooperman has joined the Santa Monica office of Avenue, a postproduction facility that also maintains an operation in Chicago.
A native Canadian, Cooperman comes over after two years at Venice, Calif.-based Brass Knuckles (SHOOT, 9/18/98, p. 7), where he cut a number of music videos. He began to focus on commercials during the past year.
Among these are a client-direct spot "Body Flex" for Victoria’s Secret; "Party by Night" for Bacardi via Avrett, Free & Ginsberg, New York; "Urban Majesty" for Jeep via Don Coleman Associates, Detroit; and "Rumble" for Toyota via Saatchi & Saatchi, Torrance, Calif. Additionally, Cooperman has cut "Who Am I" for Washington Post.com via Adworks, Washington, D.C., and "Your News" for MSNBC via Quantum Leap Communications, Chicago.
Cooperman’s music video editorial credits include the clips "Private Emotion," by Ricky Martin; "Sweet Child of Mine," by Sheryl Crow; "Turn Your Lights Down Low," by Lauryn Hill and Bob Marley; "Ten Days Late," by Third Eye Blind; and "When You Believe," by Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.
Avenue co-executive producer Jeff Yuen said that he believes Cooperman represents "the next A-list editor in town," adding, "He’s a brilliant editor, really. His spots are very hip, [with] lots of movement and great rhythm. He had pretty impressive billings last year, too, for only his second year in L.A. He’ll help us boost our sales and our recognition in the community. And he’s a young, straight-shooting kind of guy who fits in great with our atmosphere here."
Noted Cooperman, "I liked the fact that [Avenue] had a strong history and they’ve been around for awhile. I liked the people here and I saw their reels, and I just liked what they’re doing here. I thought I’d be a good fit."
Prior to his tenure at Brass Knuckles, Cooperman spent four years at Toronto-based Black Walk Productions, where he began his editorial career. In that span, Cooperman estimates, he cut about 200 music videos for the likes of Crash Test Dummies, Barenaked Ladies and Shawn Mullins. In 1997, he received recognition from MuchMusic (the Canadian version of MTV), whose Video Awards honored him in the category of best editing for the clip "Tangerine," by Moist.
Cooperman explained that his shift into spotwork was prompted, in part, by the fact that a number of music video directors he had been working with-among them, Francis Lawrence of Hollywood-based DNA, and Frank Sacramento of Hollywood and London-based Oil Factory Films-were beginning to direct more commercials. "It just seemed natural that they brought the [commercial] clients to me."
"I still enjoy doing videos if it’s a nice concept," continued Cooperman, "but I’m trying to pursue more commercial work. Especially with the actors’ strike, a lot of commercials that I’ve been working on have been almost like videos. They’re just little montages and there’s no real dialogue-just a musical track. What I like doing is using a lot of sound design that I do myself. I’ve noticed that a lot of people are looking for a music video style, and they’re seeking out editors that have cut videos, to make spots in that style."
Cooperman joins Avenue’s West Coast-based creative editorial contingent that also includes Matt Konicek, Roger Marshall, Rochelle Ford, Kim Salter, Dean Gonzales, Adrienne Gits, Mary Hackett and Martha Kelley. The company’s Chicago-based editors are Don Avila, Gail Gilbert, Brian Johnson, Terry Kaney, Phil Lee, Kevin McGurn, Tom Perschke, Chris Shegich, Brian Sepanik and Liz Tate.
At press time, Cooperman was preparing to cut a music video for recording artist Vitamin C. Avenue is represented on the West Coast by Santa Monica-based Char & Associates.
